Four current Bruins players on the roster won't be in Boston when the season ends in April.
Struggling to prove that they belong in the Stanley Cup Playoffs, the Boston Bruins haven’t been able to put consistent hockey together yet. Currently sitting in third place in the Atlantic Division, continuing to play the way they are will get them a wild card berth at the end of the year if they’re lucky. The Tampa Bay Lightning have five games in hand on the Black and Gold with two matchups coming in the next week.
Are the Bruins good enough to make the postseason? Maybe as they have had several players who have underperformed through the first half of the season. Every team has players who underperform each season, but it seems like Boston has more.
There is still time for the Bruins to put together consistent hockey and if they are going to be buyers at the trade deadline in March, they need to show GM Don Sweeney that he should go that route. Maybe bringing up a prospect or two might inject some energy into the lineup.
Bringing up a prospect or two could also spell trouble for some Bruins who are struggling and they could take a roster spot or two from current members of the Black and Gold. Injuries have been an issue on the backend with Hampus Lindholm being out since November and eventually, he should come back to the lineup and give the defense a key player that has been missing.
There are, however, some players currently on the roster who will not finish the season on the roster. Here are four players who won’t be on the roster in Boston when the regular season ends in April.
Trent Frederic
One name on the roster who has been rumored to be drawing interest from other clubs is Trent Frederic. He is in the final year of his contract which carries a $2.3 million cap hit. Struggling would be an understatement to describe his 2024-25 season to date. Unless he’s playing the Toronto Maple Leafs and Joseph Woll is in goal, he just hasn’t been producing. Of course, he scored a goal in the Bruins’ 6-4 loss to the Maple Leafs on Jan. 4 against Woll.
Given how badly he has been this year, there is no way that Sweeney could justify bringing him back on a new deal next season and beyond. A former first-round pick, a new start somewhere else could benefit him and a team acquiring him. If there is as much interest as there is rumored to be, Sweeney should move him by the deadline for assets to avoid losing him for nothing like Jake DeBrusk.
Marc McLaughlin
A local boy and a nice story being undrafted out of Boston College and signing with the Bruins, but he is blocking a roster spot for a young player like Matthew Poitras, Fabian Lysell, or Georgii Merkulov. Take your pick as they have earned a shot in the NHL. If the Bruins are afraid of losing him through waivers as a reason why he’s still in Boston, they shouldn’t be.
Boston has had all kinds of issues in their bottom six this season and they have tried fixing it in a number of different ways, but McLaughlin hasn’t been the answer averaging under 10 minutes a night. As much as he brings energy to each game, he’s primarily a fourth-line forward, but it’s hard to break up that line.
Oliver Wahlstrom
It was the right move claiming Oliver Wahlstrom off of waivers from the New York Islanders, but he hasn’t shown much, if anything, in his time with the Bruins. There is no doubt that the talent is there for him to be at least a third-line NHL forward, he just looks as lost with the Black and Gold as he did with the Islanders.
You have to think that at least at the trade deadline Sweeney makes a move or two and if he adds, it’ll be a low-cost forward. He’ll likely get some more chances, but unless things change quickly, he might not be around much longer. Wahlstrom will need to find lightning in a bottle in terms of production to stick around.
Jordan Oesterle
When Lindholm went down with an injury against the St. Louis Blues in November, Jordan Oesterle got the call from the Providence Bruins and has been a steady fill-in and sharing time with Parker Wortherspoon. Eventually, Boston will ge getting their left-shot blueliner back and Oesterle will likely be the odd man out. All in all, he’s not a bad option depth-wise, there is just no room for him when the backend is healthy.
Of course, Oesterle could make decisions difficult for the Bruins as he logs an average of 18:07 a night, but you get the feeling the organization favors Wortherspoon and the physical presence he brings.
